?A purported message from al-Qaida chief Ayman al-Zawahiri calls for a campaign of guerrilla warfare against foreign troops in Somalia.

The alleged message from Zawahiri appeared Tuesday on the website of Somali militant group al-Shabab, which is fighting African forces that support Somalia's government.

Al-Qaida Leader Urges Guerrilla Warfare in Somalia

The speaker, talking in Arabic, references al-Shabab's loss of the port of Kismayo, an indicator the recording was made recently.

Al-Qaida Leader Urges Guerrilla Warfare in Somalia

He urges jihadist fighters to disregard the number of troops and attack them through ambushes and suicide bombings.

Al-Qaida Leader Urges Guerrilla Warfare in Somalia

Al-Shabab made a formal alliance with al-Qaida in February but has suffered continuous battlefield losses to pro-government troops from Kenya, Ethiopia and the African Union.

Kismayo was the last major town controlled by the group, which once ruled most of southern and central Somalia.

Somalia's newly-installed central government hopes to restore order to a country that has not had a stable central authority since 1991.